Pedro Franceschi
Born 1997 · Age 28
Brazilian software engineer and entrepreneur; co-founder of Pagar.me and Brex; Stanford admittee who dropped out to build Brex; recognized on Forbes 30 Under 30 and involved in fintech innovation.
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Life & Career Timeline
Father diagnosed with cancer / father's later death
Father was first diagnosed with skin cancer then lymphoma; Pedro's father later passed away shortly after Pedro turned eight, an event Pedro cites as formative.
Began learning to code independently
Around ages 8–9 Pedro taught himself to code using Google and technology books; early curiosity in computers began here.
Worked at Brainjuice (first known job)
Worked at Brainjuice from 2009 to early 2010 while still young/while in school.
Worked at Sync Mobile
Employed at Sync Mobile from 2010 to 2011 (software engineering work while in school).
Built iPad window-management software
At age 14 developed an iPad window management app enabling management of multiple applications simultaneously; this notoriety helped get software jobs in Brazil.
Worked at M4U (later acquired by Bemobi)
Worked at M4U from 2011 to 2013; M4U was later acquired by Bemobi (acquisition mentioned in source).
Met future co-founder Henrique Dubugras
Befriended Henrique Dubugras on Twitter while both in high school; they debated coding tools and later became co-founders.
Co-founded Pagar.me
Pedro and Henrique founded Pagar.me, a developer-friendly online payments processor for Brazil, while both were 16.
Began managing non-technical teams at Pagar.me (Risk, Finance, CX, Sales)
Pedro transitioned from pure engineering to manage Risk, then Finance, Customer Experience, and Sales — learning to run non-technical functions.
Transitioned to co-CEO model at Pagar.me
Approximately two years into Pagar.me, Pedro and Henrique moved to a co-CEO operating model.
Relocated to U.S. to attend Stanford
After selling Pagar.me, Pedro moved to California to attend Stanford with Henrique; cited as an important decision to access Silicon Valley networks.
Pagar.me reached 100+ employees
By the time of the sale in 2016, Pagar.me had grown to over one hundred employees.
Reported involvement with StoneCo after Pagar.me sale
Sources list StoneCo in relation to Pagar.me's acquisition; some public profiles list a board/relationship with StoneCo (post-acquisition involvement unclear).
Sold Pagar.me to StoneCo (exit)
Pagar.me was acquired by StoneCo in 2016 for reported 'tens of millions' of USD.
Accepted to Stanford University
Pedro and Henrique were both accepted into Stanford University in 2016 and moved to the U.S. to attend.
Brex operational model and product approach defined
Brex issued corporate charge cards tailored to startups — setting limits based on bank account balances and investor funding rather than personal credit history.
Dropped out of Stanford to found Brex
After less than one year at Stanford, Pedro and Henrique dropped out to pursue their next startup; Brex was founded January 2017.
Founded Brex
Pedro Franceschi and Henrique Dubugras founded Brex, a fintech offering corporate cards and cash management for startups; early operations started in a house then moved to an office in San Francisco.
Brex reached $1.1B valuation
By mid-2018 Brex was reported to have amassed a valuation of approximately $1.1 billion (unicorn status achieved in under two years).
Brex raised $50M from PayPal Mafia and other investors
A financing round reported as $50 million attracted investors including PayPal-related backers; this funding helped accelerate Brex's product and growth.
Named to Forbes 30 Under 30 (Finance) / other recognitions
Pedro (and Brex) received recognition including Forbes 30 Under 30 and coverage in Fintech 50 listings during 2019.
Brex launched physical credit card for e-commerce merchants
Brex announced a second product: a physical credit card tailored for e-commerce companies (press coverage Feb 4, 2019).
Featured in Fintech 50 (2019)
Brex and its founders were included in coverage of the Fintech 50 list and related press in early 2019.
Mental-health crisis and began therapy
In mid-August 2019 Pedro experienced a panic attack prior to the Brex Cash launch and began seeing a psychologist weekly; this shaped later public mental-health advocacy.
Launched Brex Cash at TechCrunch Disrupt
Brex launched Brex Cash (cash management / bank replacement product) at TechCrunch Disrupt; internally celebrated; built banking core in under nine months.
Internal memo 'Why I Believe in Growth Mindset' (internal)
Pedro shared a personal memo with Brex employees emphasizing growth mindset; memo dated July 22, 2020 (he referenced his birthday that Sunday).
Brex financing at $12.3B valuation; founders become billionaires
Brex raised funds at an approximately $12.3 billion valuation; press reported that co-founders Henrique and Pedro became billionaires after the round.
Recognized in press as an under-30 billionaire
Press coverage in late 2020/early 2021 named Pedro among the youngest fintech billionaires after Brex's late-2020 financing.
Published 'Why I Believe in Growth Mindset' on Medium
Pedro published the growth-mindset memo publicly on Medium on Jan 6, 2021, sharing personal and leadership lessons.
Published 'My journey with mental health' on Brex blog
Pedro publicly shared his mental-health story on Brex's blog on Feb 8, 2022, discussing therapy, panic attacks, and company benefits expansion.
Media coverage: Brex facing struggles (Forbes)
Forbes published an article questioning whether Brex co-founder Pedro Franceschi can revive the struggling fintech (Dec 5, 2022).
Key Achievement Ages
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